Logistics major investments in long-distance vehicles

In a move to expand its footprint
into neighbouring countries,
MSC Logistics has invested
in long-distance vehicles that
will not only serve the port-to-
Johannesburg routes but will
transport cargo further afield to
the likes of Swaziland, Botswana
and Zimbabwe.
“We have come a long way since
we established a small terminal
office in 1987. We now have
our own offices in City Deep,
Johannesburg with a local fleet of
150 sub-contractor drivers and a
trailer fleet in excess of 450,” said
James Gorrell, MSC Logistics
regional manager – City Deep.
He told FTW that growth
possibilities in Gauteng were “huge”
due to the province’s vast export
commodity resources such as coal,
copper, platinum and manganese.
“We’re excited that the Gauteng
provincial government has
identified five logistical rail
hubs for development, including
City Deep and Tambo Springs
– essential in the transport of
bulk commodities – but we
remain concerned that the poor
infrastructure and service delivery
from the rail side has seen a
number of customers moving away
from rail and back to road,” Gorrell
commented.
This remains one of a number
of logistics challenges that need
to be overcome in the province
to ensure ongoing trade growth,
in his view. He further suggested
that high logistics costs could
be overcome through systems
integration between various road
transport and customs authorities
to enable them to keep better track
of detained containers and to
coordinate inspections.
“This could reduce depot costs,”
said Gorrell, adding that crossborder
points also needed to be
modernised and manned with
experienced staff to ensure quicker
truck turnaround time and, equally
importantly, take financial strain
off customers for demurrage costs.